U.S. Weighs Intervention in Syria | Study: Damaged Products Less Likely to Be Recycled | Five New J.D. Salinger Manuscripts to Be Published in 2015

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

U.S. Weighs Intervention in Syria | C.I.A. Documents: U.S. Had Knowledge of 1980s Chemical Attacks in Iran | New State Department Office Aims to Engage Religious Communities | Greening The Sports Industry | Study: Damaged Products Less Likely to Be Recycled | Five New J.D. Salinger Manuscripts to Be Published in 2015 | Remembering the March on Washington & Next Steps for Civil Rights

A new report from Foreign Policy says that the U.S. knew Saddam Hussein was planning to launch a chemical attack and still provided him with support. Rick Francona is retired Airforce Lt. Col. and a liaison officer in Baghdad during the 1980's. He joins The Takeaway to discuss his experience on the ground in Baghdad and why the U.S. would accept the use of chemical weapons.

A new initiative at the State Department aims to engage religious constituents throughout the world, and promote human rights by educating religious groups. Shaun Casey, director of the State Department's new Office of Faith-Based Community Initiatives, says he's ready to engage with groups across the religious spectrum.

To make everyone winners regardless of their team allegiance or political outlook, the sports industry is going green. The National Green Sports Alliance is holding it's annual convention in New York City, the city of the upcoming Super Bowl in 2014. Martin Tull, the executive director of the alliance, says being green is a team color in all sports these days.

Does a dent in a soda can or a crumpled piece of paper affect people’s recycling habits? As it turns out, yes. According to a recent study by professors at the University of Alberta and Boston University, what our refuse looks like may be a determining factor in whether or not we recycle. Jennifer Argo, co-author of the study, joins the Takeaway to discuss how people perceive waste and how re-branding recycling may help people to recycle more often.

For J.D. Salinger fans, 2015 will be a big year. Authors of a new biography claim Salinger left a time table and specific instructions for publishing five unseen manuscripts, starting in 2015. Amy Hungerford, a professor of English and American studies at Yale University, explains the potential literary significance.

Fifty years ago tomorrow, 250,000 protesters from across the country converged on the Washington Mall for the 1963 March on Washington. Dorothy Pitman Hughes is a civil rights activist who helped to organize the march. Though 50 years have gone by, she says the country and we all as Americans still have much work left to do.